The Unity and Trinity of God
The Existence of God
The Possibility of the Natural Knowledge of God in the Light of Supernatural Revelation
#1 God, our Creator and Lord, can be known with certainty, by the natural light of reason from created things.
God’s Existence as an Object of Faith
#2 God’s existence is not merely an object of natural rational knowledge, but also an object of supernatural faith.
The Nature of God
The Natural Knowledge of the Nature of God in This World
#3 God’s Nature is incomprehensible to men.
The Supernatural Knowledge of the Divine Essence in the Other World
#4 The blessed in Heaven possess an immediate intuitive knowledge of the Divine Essence.
#5 The Immediate Vision of God transcends the natural power of cognition of the human soul, and is therefore supernatural.
#6 The soul, for the Immediate Vision of God, requires the light of glory.
#7 God’s Essence is also incomprehensible to the blessed in Heaven.
The Attributes or the Qualities of God
The Attributes of God in General
#8 The Divine Attributes are really identical among themselves and with the Divine Essence.
The Absolute Perfection of God
#9 God is absolutely perfect.
God’s Infinity
#10 God is actually infinite in every perfection.
God’s Simplicity
#11 God is absolutely simple.
God’s Unicity
#12 There is only One God.
God’s Truth
#13 The One God is, in the ontological sense, The True God.
#14 God possesses an infinite power of cognition.
#15 God is absolute Veracity.
#16 God is absolutely faithful.
God’s Goodness
#17 God is absolute ontological Goodness in Himself and in relation to others.
#18 God is absolute Moral Goodness or Holiness.
#19 God is absolute Benignity.
God’s Immutability
#20 God is absolutely immutable.
God’s Eternity
#21 God is eternal.
The Immensity or Immeasurability of God and His Omnipresence
#22 God is immense or absolutely immeasurable.
#23 God is everywhere present in created space.
The Perfection of Divine Knowledge
#24 God’s Knowledge Is Infinite.
Object and Division of the Divine Knowing
#25 God knows all that is merely possible by the knowledge of simple intelligence.
#26 God knows all real things in the past, the present and the future.
#27 By the knowledge of vision God also foresees the future free acts of the rational creatures with infallible certainty.
The Perfection of the Divine Willing
#28 God’s Divine Will is Infinite.
The Physical Properties of the Divine Will
#29 God loves Himself of necessity, but loves and wills the creation of extra-Divine things, on the other hand, with freedom.
#30 God is almighty.
#31 God is the Lord of the heavens and of the earth.
The Moral Attributes of the Divine Will
#32 God is infinitely just.
#33 God is infinitely merciful.
The Dogma of the Trinity
The Doctrinal Decisions of the Church
#34 In God there are Three Persons, the Father, the Son and the Holy Ghost. Each of the Three Persons possesses the one (numerical) Divine Essence.
The Internal Divine Processions in General
#35 In God there are two Internal Divine Processions.
#36 The Divine Persons, not the Divine Nature, are the subject of the Internal Divine processions (in the active and in the passive sense).
The Procession of the Son from the Father by Way of Generation
#37 The Second Divine Person proceeds from the First Divine Person by Generation, and therefore is related to Him as Son to a Father.
The Procession of the Holy Ghost from the Father and the Son by way of Spiration
#38 The Holy Ghost proceeds from the Father and from the Son as from a Single Principle through a Single Spiration.
#39 The Holy Ghost does not proceed through generation but through spiration.
The Divine Relations
#40 The Relations in God are really identical with the Divine Nature.
The Divine Persons
#41 In God all is one except for the opposition of relations.
The Trinitarian Perichoresis (Circumincession)
#42 The Three Divine Persons are in One Another.
The Unity of the Divine Operation ad extra
#43 All the ad extra Activities of God are common to the Three Persons.
God the Creator
The Divine Act of Creation
The Reality of the Divine Creation of the World
#44 All that exists outside God was, in its whole substance, produced out of nothing by God.
Motive and Purpose of the Creation of the World
#45 God was moved by His Goodness to create the world.
#46 The world was created for the Glorification of God.
The Trinity and Creation
#47 The Three Divine Persons are one single, common Principle of the Creation.
Freedom of the Divine Act of Creation
#48 God created the world free from exterior compulsion and inner necessity.
#49 God has created a good world.
The Temporal Character of the World
#50 The world had a beginning in time.
The Incommunicability of the Creative Power
#51 God alone created the World.
The Preservation of the World
#52 God keeps all created things in existence.
Divine Providence and the Government of the World
#53 God, through His Providence, protects and guides all that He has created.
The Divine Work of Creation
The Origin of the First Human Pair and the Unity of the Human Race
#54 The First Man was created by God.
The Essential Constituent Parts of Human Nature
#55 Man consists of two essential parts—a material body and a spiritual soul.
Relation between nature and supernature
#56 The rational soul is per se the essential form of the body.
#57 Every human being possesses an individual soul.
#58 God has conferred on man a supernatural Destiny.
The Supernatural Endowment of the First Man
#59 Our first parents, before the Fall, were endowed with sanctifying grace.
#60 The donum immortalitatis, i.e., bodily immortality.
Original Sin
The Personal Sin of Our First Parents or Original Sin
#61 Our First Parents in Paradise sinned grievously through transgression of the Divine probationary commandment.
#62 Through sin our First Parents lost sanctifying grace and provoked the anger and the indignation of God.
#63 Our First Parents became subject to death and to the dominion of the Devil.
The Existence of Original Sin
#64 Adam’s sin is transmitted to his posterity, not by imitation, but by descent.
The Transmission of Original Sin
#65 Original sin is transmitted by natural generation.
The Consequences of Original Sin
#66 In the state of original sin man is deprived of sanctifying grace and all that this implies, as well as of the preternatural gifts of integrity.
#67 Souls who depart this life in the state of original sin are excluded from the Beatific Vision of God.
The Angels
Existence, Origin and Number of the Angels
#68 In the beginning of time God created spiritual essences (angels) out of nothing.
The Nature of the Angels
#69 The nature of the angels is spiritual.
The primary task of the good angels is the glorification and the service of God. (Certain)
#70 The secondary task of the good angels is the protection of men and care for their salvation.
The Power of the Bad Angels
#71 The Devil possesses a certain dominion over mankind by reason of Adam’s sin.
The Doctrine of God the Redeemer
The Two Natures in Christ
The Dogma of the True Divinity of Christ, and Its Opponents
#72 Jesus Christ is True God and True Son of God.
The Reality of Christ’s Human Nature
#73 Christ assumed a real body, not an apparent body.
The Integrity of Christ’s Human Nature
#74 Christ assumed not only a body but also a rational soul.
The Adamite Origin of Christ’s Human Nature
#75 Christ was truly generated and born of a daughter of Adam, the Virgin Mary.
Christ is one Person
#76 The Divine and the human natures are united hypostatically in Christ, that is, joined to each other in one Person.
The Duality of the Natures
#77 In the Hypostatic Union each of the two natures of Christ continues unimpaired, untransformed and unmixed with the other.
The Duality of Wills and Modes of Operation in Christ
#78 Each of the two natures in Christ possesses its own natural will and its own natural mode of operation.
The Beginning and Duration of the Hypostatic Union
#79 The Hypostatic Union of Christ’s human nature with the Divine Logos took place at the moment of conception.
#80 The Hypostatic Union will never cease.
The Relationship of the Hypostatic Union to the Trinity
#81 The Hypostatic Union was effected by the Three Divine Persons acting in common.
#82 Only the Second Divine Person became Man.
The Natural Sonship of God of the Man
#83 Jesus Christ Not only as God but also as man Jesus Christ is the natural Son of God.
Christ’s Right to Adoration
#84 The God-Man Jesus Christ is to be venerated with one single mode of Worship, the absolute Worship of Latria which is due to God alone.
The Communication of Idioms
#85 Christ’s Divine and Human characteristics and activities are to be predicated of the one Word Incarnate.
The Attributes of Christ’s Human Nature
Christ’s Sinlessness and Impeccability
#86 Christ was free from all sin, from original sin as well as from all personal sin.
Christ’s Capacity for Suffering
#87 Christ’s human nature was passible.
The Purpose of the Incarnation
#88 The Son of God became man in order to redeem men.
Necessity for and Freedom of the Redemption
#89 Fallen man cannot redeem himself.
Reality of Christ’s Priestly Office
#90 The God-Man Jesus Christ is a High Priest.
The Exercise of the Sacerdotal Office or Christ’s Sacrifice
#91 Christ offered Himself on the Cross as a true and proper sacrifice.
The Soteriological Importance of Christ’s Sacrifice
#92 Christ by His Sacrifice on the Cross has ransomed us and reconciled us with God.
Christ’s Vicarious Atonement
#93 Christ did not die for the predestined only. Christ’s Merits Christ, through His Passion and Death, merited reward from God.
Christ’s Descent into Hell
#94 After His Death, Christ’s soul, which was separated from His body, descended into the underworld.
Christ’s Resurrection
#95 On the third day after His Death Christ rose gloriously from the dead.
Christ’s Ascension into Heaven
#96 Christ ascended body and soul into Heaven and sits at the right hand of the Father.
The Mother of the Redeemer
Reality of Mary’s Motherhood of God
#97 Mary is truly the Mother of God.
Mary’s Immaculate Conception
#98 Mary was conceived without stain of original sin.
Mary’s Perpetual Virginity
#99 Mary conceived by the Holy Ghost without the co-operation of man.
#100 Mary bore her Son without any violation of her virginal integrity.
#101 Also after the Birth of Jesus Mary remained a Virgin.
The Bodily Assumption of Mary into Heaven
#102 Mary was assumed body and soul into Heaven.
The Doctrine of God the Sanctifier
Actual Grace
Antecedent and Consequent Grace
#103 There is a supernatural intervention of God in the faculties of the soul, which precedes the free act of the will. There is a supernatural influence of God in the faculties of the soul which coincides in time with man’s free act of will.
The Necessity of Grace for the Acts of the Supernatural Order
#104 For every salutary act internal supernatural grace of God (gratia elevans) is absolutely necessary.
#105 Internal supernatural grace is absolutely necessary for the beginning of faith and of salvation.
#106 Without the special help of God the justified cannot persevere to the end in justification.
#107 The justified person is not able for his whole life long to avoid all sins, even venial sins, without the special privilege of the grace of God.
Human Nature’s Capacity to Act without Grace, and the Limits of This Capacity
#108 Even in the fallen state, man can, by his natural intellectual power, know religious and moral truths.
#109 For the performance of a morally good action Sanctifying Grace is not required.
#110 In the state of fallen nature it is morally impossible for man without Supernatural Revelation, to know easily, with absolute certainty and without admixture of error, all religious and moral truths of the natural order.
God’s Freedom in the Distribution of Grace or the Gratuity of Grace
#111 Grace cannot be merited by natural works either de condigno or de congruo.
The Universality of Grace
#112 God gives all the just sufficient grace (gratia proxime vel remote sufficiens) for the observation of the Divine Commandments.
The Mystery of Predestination
#113 God, by His Eternal Resolve of Will, has predetermined certain men to eternal blessedness.
The Mystery of Reprobation
#114 God, by an Eternal Resolve of His Will, predestines certain men, on account of their foreseen sins, to eternal rejection.
The Teaching of the Church on Grace and Freedom
#115 The Human Will remains free under the influence of efficacious grace, which is not irresistible.
#116 There is a grace which is truly sufficient and yet remains inefficacious (gratia vere et mere sufficiens).
Habitual Grace
The Preparation for Justification
#117 The sinner can and must prepare himself by the help of actual grace for the reception of the grace by which he is justified.
#118 The justification of an adult is not possible without Faith.
#119 Besides faith, further acts of disposition must be present.
The Formal Effects of Sanctifying Grace
#120 Sanctifying grace sanctifies the soul.
#121 Sanctifying grace makes the just man a friend of God.
#122 Sanctifying grace makes the just man a child of God and gives him a claim to the inheritance of Heaven.
The Comity of sanctifying grace
#123 The three Divine or theological virtues of faith, hope and charity are infused with sanctifying grace.
The Attributes of the State of Grace
#124 Without special Divine Revelation no one can know with the certainty of faith, if he be in the state of grace.
#125 The degree of justifying grace is not identical in all the just.
#126 Grace can be increased by good works.
#127 The grace by which we are justified may be lost, and is lost by every grievous sin.
Supernatural Merit
The Reality of Supernatural Merit
#128 By his good works the justified man really acquires a claim to supernatural reward from God.
The Object of Supernatural Merit
#129 A just man merits for himself through each good work an increase of sanctifying grace, eternal life (if he dies in a state of grace) and an increase of heavenly glory.
The Church
The Foundation of the Church by Christ
#130 The Church was founded by the God-Man Jesus Christ.
The Purpose of the Church
#131 Christ founded the Church in order to continue His work of redemption for all time.
The Hierarchical Constitution of the Church
#132 Christ gave His Church an hierarchical constitution.
#133 The powers bestowed on the Apostles have descended to the bishops.
Perpetuation of the Hierarchy
The Primacy of St. Peter
#134 Christ appointed the Apostle Peter to be the first of all the Apostles and to be the visible Head of the whole Church, by appointing him immediately and personally to the primacy of jurisdiction.
The Primacy of Jurisdiction of the Pope
#135 According to Christ’s ordinance, Peter is to have successors in his Primacy over the whole Church and for all time.
#136 The successors of Peter in the Primacy are the bishops of Rome.
The Nature of the Papal Primacy
#137 The Pope possesses full and supreme power of jurisdiction over the whole Church, not merely in matters of faith and morals, but also in Church discipline and in the government of the Church.
Papal Teaching Primacy or Papal Infallibility
#138 The Pope is infallible when he speaks ex cathedra.
The Bishops
#139 By virtue of Divine right the bishops possess an ordinary power of government over their dioceses.
Christ and the Church
#140 Christ founded the Church.
#141 Christ is the Head of the Church.
The Infallibility of the Church
#142 In the final decision on doctrines concerning faith and morals the Church is infallible.
#143 The primary object of the Infallibility is the formally revealed truths of Christian Doctrine concerning faith and morals.
#144 The totality of the Bishops is infallible, when they, either assembled in general council or scattered over the earth, propose a teaching of faith or morals as one to be held by all the faithful.
Characteristic of the Church
The Unity of the Church
#145 The Church founded by Christ is unique and one.
The Sanctity of the Church
#146 The Church founded by Christ is holy.
The Catholicity of the Church
#147 The Church founded by Christ is catholic.
The Apostolicity of the Church
#148 The Church founded by Christ is apostolic.
The Necessity for Membership of the Church
#149 Membership of the Church is necessary for all men for salvation.
The Faithful with the Saints and the Poor Souls
The Communion between the Faithful on Earth and the Saints in Heaven
#150 It is permissible and profitable to venerate the Saints in Heaven, and to invoke their intercession.
#151 It is permissible and profitable to venerate the relics of the Saints.
#152 It is permissible and profitable to venerate images of the Saints.
The Communion of the Faithful on earth and the Saints in Heaven with the Poor Souls in Purgatory
#153 The living Faithful can come to the assistance of the Souls in Purgatory by their intercessions (suffrages).
The Sacraments
The Objective Efficacy of the Sacraments
#154 The Sacraments of the New Covenant contain the grace which they signify, and bestow it on those who do not hinder it.
#155 The Sacraments work ex opere operato.
The Effects of the Sacraments
#156 All the Sacraments of the New Covenant confer sanctifying grace on the receivers.
#157 Three Sacraments, Baptism, Confirmation and Holy Orders, imprint a character, that is, an indelible spiritual mark, and for this reason cannot be repeated.
#158 The Sacramental Character is a spiritual mark imprinted on the soul.
#159 The Sacramental Character continues at least until the death of its bearer.
The Institution of the Sacraments by Christ
#160 All Sacraments of the New Covenant were instituted by Jesus Christ.
The Seven Sacraments
#161 There are seven Sacraments of the New Law.
The Necessity of the Sacraments
#162 The Sacraments of the New Covenant are necessary for the salvation of mankind.
The Minister of the Sacraments
#163 For the valid dispensing of the Sacraments it is necessary that the minister accomplish the Sacramental Sign in the proper manner.
#164 The minister must further have the intention at least of doing what the Church does.
The Recipient of the Sacraments
#165 In the case of adult recipients moral worthiness is necessary for the worthy or fruitful reception of the Sacraments.
The Sacrament of Baptism
Concept of Baptism and Its Sacramental Nature
#166 Baptism is a true Sacrament instituted by Jesus Christ.
The Outward Sign of Baptism
#167 The materia remota of the Sacrament of Baptism is true and natural water.
The Effects of Baptism
#168 Baptism confers the grace of justification.
#169 Baptism effects the remission of all punishments of sin, both the eternal and the temporal.
#170 Even if it be unworthily received, valid Baptism imprints on the soul of the recipient an indelible spiritual mark, the Baptismal Character, and for this reason, the Sacrament cannot be repeated.
The Necessity of Baptism
#171 Baptism by water (Baptismus fluminis) is, since the promulgation of the Gospel, necessary for all men without exception, for salvation.
The Minister of Baptism
#172 Baptism can be validly administered by anyone.
The Recipient of Baptism
#173 Baptism can be received by any person in the wayfaring state who is not already baptised.
#174 The Baptism of young children is valid and licit.
The Sacrament of Confirmation
Concept of Confirmation and Its Sacramental Nature
#175 Confirmation is a true Sacrament properly so-called.
The Effects of Confirmation
#176 Confirmation imprints on the soul an indelible spiritual mark, and for this reason, cannot be repeated.
The Minister of Confirmation
#177 The ordinary minister of Confirmation is the Bishop alone.
The Sacrament of the Eucharist
Christ’s Real Presence according to the Testimony of Holy Scripture
#178 The Body and Blood of Jesus Christ are truly, really and substantially present in the Eucharist.
Dogma and Concept of Transubstantiation
#179 Christ becomes present in the Sacrament of the Altar by the transformation of the whole substance of the bread into His #180 Body and of the whole substance of the wine into His Blood.
The Sacramental Accidents
#181 The Accidents of bread and wine continue after the change of the substance.
The Totality of the Presence
#182 The Body and the Blood of Christ together with His Soul and His Divinity and therefore the Whole Christ are truly present in the Eucharist.
#183 The Whole Christ is present under each of the two Species.
#184 When either consecrated species is divided the Whole Christ is present in each part of the species.
The Permanence of the Real Presence
#185 After the Consecration has been completed the Body and Blood are permanently present in the Eucharist.
The Adoration due to the Eucharist
#186 The Worship of Adoration (latria) must be given to Christ present in the Eucharist.
The Sacramental Nature of the Eucharist
#187 The Eucharist is a true Sacrament instituted by Christ.
The Outward Signs of the Eucharist
#188 The matter for the consummation of the Eucharist is bread and wine.
The Necessity of the Eucharist
#189 For children before the age of reason the reception of the Eucharist is not necessary for salvation.
#190 Communion under two forms is not necessary for any individual member of the Faithful, either by reason of Divine precept or as a means of salvation.
The Minister of the Eucharist
#191 The power of consecration resides in a validly consecrated priest only.
The Recipient of the Eucharist
#192 The Sacrament of the Eucharist can be validly received by every baptised person in the wayfaring state, including young children.
#193 For the worthy reception of the Eucharist the state of grace as well as the proper and pious disposition are necessary. (De fide as regards the state of grace.)
The Sacrificial Character of the Eucharist according to the Teaching of the Church
#194 The Holy Mass is a true and proper Sacrifice.
The Relation of the Sacrifice of the Mass to the Sacrifice of the Cross
#195 In the Sacrifice of the Mass, Christ’s Sacrifice on the Cross is made present, its memory is celebrated, and its saving power is applied.
#196 In the Sacrifice of the Mass and in the Sacrifice of the Cross the Sacrificial Gift and the Primary Sacrificing Priest are identical; only the nature and mode of the offering are different.
The Effects of the Sacrifice of the Mass
#197 The Sacrifice of the Mass is not merely a sacrifice of praise and thanksgiving, but also a sacrifice of expiation and impetration.
The Sacrament of Penance
The Dogma and the Heretical Counter-propositions
#198 The Church has received from Christ the power of remitting sins committed after Baptism.
The Church’s Power to Forgive sins as a True Power of Absolution
#199 By the Church’s Absolution sins are truly and immediately remitted.
The Universality of the Church’s Power to Forgive Sins
#200 The Church’s power to forgive sins extends to all sin without exception.
The Judicial Character of the Church’s Power to Forgive Sins
#201 The exercise of the Church’s power to forgive sins is a judicial act.
Perfect Contrition
#202 Extra-sacramental justification is effected by perfect sorrow only when it is associated with the desire for the Sacrament (votum sacramenti).
Imperfect Contrition
#203 Contrition springing from the motive of fear is a morally good and supernatural act.
The Divine Institution of Confession and the Necessity of Confession for Salvation
#204 The Sacramental confession of sins is ordained by God and is necessary for salvation.
The Object of Confession
#205 By virtue of Divine ordinance all grievous sins according to kind and number, as well as those circumstances which alter their nature, are subject to the obligation of confession.
#206 The confession of venial sins is not necessary but is permitted and is useful.
Concept and Quality of Sacramental Satisfaction
#207 All temporal punishments for sin are not always remitted by God with the guilt of sin and the eternal punishment.
#208 The priest has the right and the duty, according to the nature of the sins and the ability of the penitent, to impose salutary and appropriate works of satisfaction.
#209 Extra-sacramental penitential works, such as the performance of voluntary penitential practices and the patient bearing of trials sent by God, possess satisfactory value.
The Priest’s Absolution as the Form of the Sacrament of Penance
#210 The form of the Sacrament of Penance consists in the words of Absolution.
#211 Absolution, in association with the acts of the penitent, effects the forgiveness of sins.
The Effects of the Sacrament of Penance
#212 The principal effect of the Sacrament of Penance is the reconciliation of the sinner with God.
The Necessity of the Sacrament of Penance
#213 The Sacrament of Penance is necessary for salvation to those who, after Baptism, fall into grievous sin.
The Minister of the Sacrament of Penance
#214 The sole possessors of the Church’s Power of Absolution are the bishops and priests.
#215 Absolution given by deacons, clerics of lower rank, and laymen is not Sacramental Absolution.
The Recipient of the Sacrament of Penance
#216 The Sacrament of Penance can be received by any baptised person, who, after Baptism, has committed a grievous or a venial sin.
The Doctrine of Indulgences
#217 The Church possesses the power to grant Indulgences.
#218 The use of Indulgences is useful and salutary to the Faithful.
The Sacrament of Extreme Unction
Concept and Sacramental Nature of Extreme Unction
#219 Extreme Unction is a true and proper Sacrament instituted by Christ.
The Outward Signs of Extreme Unction
#220 The remote matter of Extreme Unction is oil.
#221 The form consists in the prayer of the priest for the sick person which accompanies the anointing.
The Effects of Extreme Unction
#222 Extreme Unction gives the sick person sanctifying grace in order to arouse and strengthen him. Extreme Unction effects the remission of grievous sins still remaining and of venial sins.
#223 Extreme Unction sometimes effects the restoration of bodily health, if this be of spiritual advantage.
The Minister of Extreme Unction
#224 Only bishops and priests can validly administer Extreme Unction.
The Recipient of Extreme Unction
#225 Extreme Unction can be received only by the Faithful who are seriously ill.
The Sacrament of Holy Order
Concept and Sacramental Nature of Holy Order
#226 Holy Order is a true and proper Sacrament which was instituted by Christ.
The Individual Grades of Ordination
#227 The consecration of priests is a Sacrament.
#228 Bishops are superior to priests.
The Effects of the Sacrament of Holy Order
#229 The Sacrament of Order confers sanctifying grace on the recipient.
#230 The Sacrament of Order imprints a character on the recipient.
#231 The Sacrament of Order confers a permanent spiritual power on the recipient.
The Dispenser of the Sacrament of Order
#232 The ordinary dispenser of all grades of Order, both the sacramental and the non-sacramental, is the validly consecrated bishop alone.
The Sacrament of Matrimony
Concept, Origin and Sacramental Nature of Matrimony
#233 Marriage is a true and proper Sacrament instituted by God.
The Effects of the Sacrament of Matrimony
#234 From the sacramental contract of marriage emerges the Bond of Marriage, which binds both marriage partners to a lifelong indivisible community of life.
#235 The Sacrament of Matrimony bestows Sanctifying Grace on the contracting parties.
The Doctrine of God the Consummator
The Four Last Things
Death
#236 In the present order of salvation death is a punishment for sin.
#237 All human beings subject to original sin are subject to the law of death.
The Particular Judgment
#238 Immediately after death the particular judgment takes place, in which, by a Divine Sentence of Judgment, the eternal fate of the deceased person is decided. (Sent. fidei proxima.)
Heaven
#239 The souls of the just which in the moment of death are free from all guilt of sin and punishment for sin, enter into Heaven.
#240 The bliss of Heaven lasts for all eternity.
#241 The degree of perfection of the beatific vision granted to the just is proportioned to each one’s merits.
Hell
#242 The souls of those who die in the condition of personal grievous sin enter Hell.
#243 The punishment of Hell lasts for all eternity.
Purgatory
#244 The souls of the just which, in the moment of death, are burdened with venial sins or temporal punishment due to sins, enter Purgatory.
The Second Coming of Christ
Reality of the Second Coming
#245 At the end of the world Christ will come again in glory to pronounce judgment.
The Resurrection of the Dead
#246 All the dead will rise again on the last day with their bodies. The dead will rise again with the same bodies as they had on earth.
The General Judgment
#247 Christ, on His second coming, will judge all men.
